Batman: Detective Comics #1074 – Ram V, Dan Watters, Writers; Dustin Nguyen, Hayden Sherman, Artists; John Kalisz, Triona Farrell, Colorists
Ray – 9/10
Ray: It’s been a few months since the Orgham clan successfully threw Gotham into chaos and sent Batman into a dark night of the soul, and this issue eases us back into the main story with a tale that focuses heavily on Batman’s state of mind as he struggles to maintain a fragile grip on sanity. Dustin Nguyen steps in for the regular artists this month, a good choice for the strange and dreamlike tone of the series. As he travels through Gotham, he’s visited by visions of the past—first Thomas Wayne, calling back to one of the few quiet moments they shared as father and son, and then by Dick Grayson, with a segment set at Haly’s circus. Both start in a peaceful way, before diverging into some seriously intense horror.
But the Orghams’ claws are deep into the city, and it’s not long before they’ve convinced everyone that Batman—last seen bursting out of a building while on fire—is the actual threat facing the city. A police officer with a history with Batman is the one deputized to track him down, a task that leads him down a rabbit hole. But this is nothing compared to what Batman is experiencing, as his mind clears enough to finally face off against Barbatos—who may be the only hope he has to maintain his sanity as the Orghams plot their next move. This is a fascinating arc, and one that promises to set up Ram V’s final chapter compellingly. I have no clue where this is going, and that’s a very good thing.
Speaking of creepy and strange, the backup by Watters and Sherman has that in spades. Starring the Ten-Eyed Man, one of DC’s oddest villains, it finds the recently escaped criminal fixated on the idea that there’s a hole in Gotham. He sees that hole everywhere, and tries to fix it with horrifying effects at times—but actually winds up helping save lives in some cases, before defying physics itself to make this case. It’s nicely eerie, but doesn’t really make a lot of sense—which feels about right for the character.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
